No need to panic over Zika TN govt

The Tamil Nadu government has sought to allay fears over discovery of the first Zika case, saying the victim has already been cured and the village from which it was reported is under close watch.

Health Minister C Vijaya Baskar on Tuesday assured the Assembly that all required equipment and medical teams for treating the Zika virus were in place and there was no need to panic as it was a “mild illness”.

He was responding to DMK MLA Y. Prakaash (Thalli), who raised concerns about the first reported case of Zika virus attack in Tamil Nadu.

He said “A special surveillance has been mounted in a 5- km radius” around the ‘remote’ village in Krishnagiri district in western Tamil Nadu where the case was reported.

Responding to issue raised by opposition DMK, the minister said following reports of the outbreak of Zika last year, surveillance activities had been intensified in the state.

The first case of Zika in Tamil Nadu was reported from a sleepy hamlet in Krishnagiri district by the state public health authorities on Monday, nearly two months after the World Health Organization confirmed such cases in India.